Amino acid is a generic term for a class of organic compounds containing amino and carboxyl group. Amino acids are basic composing units of protein, which ensures normal physiological activities of human bodies. For example, the Branched Chain Amino acids (BCAA), including l-leucine, l-isoleucine, and l-valine, are essential to human bodies. The composition of BCAA can reduce fatigue, coordinate endocrine, improve immunity, prolong life, and other effects.
The composition of BCAA can prevent muscle from decomposing or losing nutrient. It can increase muscle capability of resisting pressure. It can also promote the synthesis of protein metabolism after exercises, speed up the synthesis of muscle, reduce muscle tissue decomposition, and help to increase muscle mass without any side effects. They are the indispensable nutritional supplements for bodybuilders and athletes.
Currently, amino acids products in markets are in the form of tablets, capsules, or powders. Among them, tablets and capsules give consumers a feeling of medicines. And consumers have to consume 5-20 g daily doses to reach desired results. This means consumers must take a number of tablets or capsules, which is a burden to consumers. Powder products cannot dissolve quickly into water, and will float on the surface of water. It generally takes 20 min to slowly dissolve 2 g amino acids into 100 ml 25° C. water. This is also inconvenient for consumers.
Among The existing technologies, lipophilic excipients, for example, fatty acids, wax, beeswax, are often used as coating materials. China Patent Application (Publication No. CN101744110A) provides an amino acids microencapsulating method. This method involves using high freezing point stearic fatty acid ester as coating material. The coating material is melted and mixed with the active amino acid, to obtain coated microencapsulated particles. This method only resolved the problem of embedding amino acids; the product, however, cannot quickly dissolve in water. And the product has low bioavailability and limited application.
China Patent Application (Publication No. CN101658244) discloses a microencapsulated amino acids product used lipophilic material as coating material. The product has sustained release and controlled release capability. But this method does not answer the market demand of a highly dispersible, quickly dissolvable amino acids product.
China Patent Application (Publication No. CN1658862A) discloses a method of manufacturing BCAA particles. That invention introduced organic acid into mixture of amino acids to increase volume ratio and to reduce dosage volume. That invention, however, still used capsules or tablets as dosage form of the active ingredient. Compared with the instant dissolvable particle products, that invention is still difficult to take for consumers, especially for consumers who have difficult in swallowing. The bioavailability of that invention is low. The evaluation of the invention's stability has not been found.